Indigenous journalist, who covered Pathalgadi movement, killed in Jharkhand

His taxi, phone and identity cards were missing but money was not. No weapon was recovered from the scene of the crime. All of this points to a pre-meditated and professionally executed murder

In the early hours of 9 December 2018, Video Volunteer Community Correspondent Amit Topno was found murdered in Ghaghra area of Jharkhand, India. Topno, an Adivasi (indigenous) inhabitant of the conflict-prone region of Khunti, Jharkhand, had been with Video Volunteers (VV) since 2012, reported for Newscode and OK Times, and most recently drove a taxi for Ola Cab.

Topno reported fearlessly on issues like sand mining, illegal alcohol sales, Adivasi rights, education, sanitation, human trafficking, land rights, culture and most recently the Pathalgadi movement. His last report for VV was produced six months ago on the Pathalgadi, a movement in